


Strategic Underestimation

by roguefaerie



Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Ableism, Access Intimacy, M/M, Period Typical Ableism, Pre-Canon, Pre-Serum Steve Rogers, Roommates, probably
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-06
Updated: 2020-08-06
Packaged: 2021-03-06 03:08:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 327
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25746409
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/roguefaerie/pseuds/roguefaerie
Summary: But they were roommates....
Relationships: James "Bucky" Barnes/Steve Rogers
Comments: 2
Kudos: 15





	Strategic Underestimation

**Author's Note:**

> We will be back to my other fandoms in a bit. I am waiting for an AO3 support ticket, but have 3 other fics in progress. In the meantime....this.
> 
> My work is transitioning to being archive-locked which I guess I should make people aware of in a few notes, so here we are.

Bucky always knew how to ask him the right questions, like: where did it hurt, was he really okay, and were they--that was the big one--were they actually okay right now. He did it quietly sometimes. He was brash in public with a bigger personality in front of others than Steve might have if they were just sitting around and talking, but he knew when to be quieter too and let Steve answer the right questions.

Was Steve really planning to get hurt or was he just exceedingly good at having it happen by accident? And which alley was it this time, and did he think that anyone would follow him home?

Home. That was a good word. When Steve knew that he and Bucky had that, he didn’t stop fighting, but he had the fights farther from their place and he knew how to duck and weave through the streets to lose somebody even if he was the one bleeding all the way--

\--home.

Home was where Bucky was, and Steve knew how to play up the things he needed to to avoid suspicion from neighbors. No matter what they actually thought was happening, he knew where home was. And so did Bucky. There wasn’t much else that Steve worried about back then as long as he knew where Bucky was--with him.

There was very little that Steve could be suspected of. He was small, and thin, and frail, and no one knew much about him except that they could recognize him.

Whatever they might assume about him it was fairly benign, even when he came home with bloody knuckles. He knew how to hide his fists in his pockets.

It was easy for Steve to look unassuming or shrink down into himself physically around others. Only Bucky knew how fierce Steve could be.

That was what asking the right questions could get you.

And it would always make Steve’s heart beat faster.


End file.
